Drag racer survives horrific airborne crash

Drag racing a car that isn't properly built with effective safety equipment can be extremely dangerous. The driver of this '55 Chevy learned a valuable lesson about safety equipment as he was ejected from the car and lived to tell the story. Not only did he live to tell the story, within second he literally stood up and walked away from the accident. What can we learn from this accident? Paying close attention to the vehicle as it makes the pull, you can see the suspension components are very loose. Loose suspension reduces your ability to control the vehicle, which was the ultimate ingredient of this destructive circumstance. As soon as the vehicle hit second gear, the torque from the motor started to push the rear end out. This is a natural reaction to large amounts of torque being introduced to the drive line. With out proper suspension to keep the vehicle tightly fastened to the road, epic failure is inevitable.

As the vehicle continues out of control, pay special attention to how the driver tried to recapture dominance over the vehicle by letting off the throttle and counter steering. This is when things get bad, and it's all due to the lack of proper suspension components. Many drivers upgrade the performance of the engine but forget about key ingredients like suspension and brakes. What good is all that power if you can't control it? As he fights to regain control, the vehicle's weight is being pushed back and forth so rapidly that there is no chance of recovery. If only he had installed stiff sway bars, sub-frame connectors, and a tighter spring and shock this may have never happened.

After the vehicle has lost complete control, it goes into a roll. This is where the miracle occurs. Mid flip, the driver is ejected from the flying death trap and lands safely on the ground. Had any variable been slightly changed, it would have been his body instead of the seat that is pictured above being launched into orbit. Just inches away from the tumbling mass, the driver gets a front row seat to watch as his car flips out of control and is immediately destroyed. Standing up before the car is even done rolling over, the driver stands in amazement to the fact he is still alive regardless of being ejected from a vehicle. Sometimes people get lucky, and sometimes they don't. This guy is really lucky, but not exactly the smartest builder on the block. If you are going to upgrade the performance of your vehicle, please upgrade suspension and braking!